I Tried Uber’s New Summer Travel Launches — Including the Luxe Uber Boat

Just in time for peak summer journey period, Uber is introducing a slew of products and solutions in well-liked family vacation places throughout Europe, most notably in Greece. They say nothing at all fairly compares to summering in the Greek islands, and I can now verify that unquestionably is the case: courtesy of Uber, I not long ago obtained an exceptional search at the app’s not too long ago introduced functions in Athens and Mykonos in Greece, which bundled an epic working experience with the new Uber Boat.

Meeting the expected demand for summer months vacation — which according to Uber is an expected 250 % increase in rides from US tourists in Europe — the experience service is increasing its familiar capabilities like Uber Taxi, Comfort and ease, and Van in new towns across Europe and particularly the Mediterranean and Balearic Islands, several of which can be booked using Uber Reserve.

In the course of my 4-working day experience in Greece, I obtained to attempt out the newness firsthand, as diverse styles of Ubers brought us to each individual spot in our jam-packed itinerary. From transporting to and from sightseeing places in Athens with area taxis and roomy vans alike to lounging on fancy boat rides in Mykonos, I identified the numerous choices trouble-free of charge. Tourists, if you happen to be setting up an upcoming excursion to Europe, I would unquestionably acquire notes.

Hold reading for a breakdown of my encounter making use of Uber’s new summer time travel products forward.

Uber Taxi

Our journey began in Athens, in which we took Uber Taxi to get from the airport to our lodge, Resort Grande Bretagne, as very well as multiple historic landmarks like the Greek Parliament and Acropolis. Whilst a standard Uber auto gets the occupation done, I appreciated receiving around the city in a cab like a regional, with no stressing about any confusion with fares or conversation.

Uber partnered with neighborhood taxi motorists to start Uber Taxi in Athens, Mykonos Santorini, Rodhos, and Corfu in Greece, as well as several towns across Italy, Spain, France, and Croatia. Contrary to when you hail a common taxi, nevertheless, you can see upfront fare estimates and motor vehicle aspects.

Uber Convenience

Right after leaving a major town like Athens, the transportation problem was a minimal trickier when we arrived in Mykonos. Fortunately, we had booked Uber Consolation and Uber Van rides in progress to get all over to locations like our lodge, Soho Roc Resort Rizes Folklore Farmstead, wherever we designed tzatziki and meatballs all through a fun cooking class and petted some quite lovable goats and the stunning Paraga Seashore, in which we boarded our Uber Boat rides. I was nonetheless super jet-lagged early on in the excursion, so the extra space and ability to notice discussion and temperature choices have been unquestionably appreciated for catnaps in concerning our functions.

Even though you might be most likely familiar with Comfort if you’re in the US, it is new to the Greek islands, Mallorca, Tenerife, the French Atlantic coast, and across the Algarve in Portugal.

Uber Boat

Now, for the key celebration: Uber Boat. I was certainly most psyched to try out the lavish new car element, which launches in Mykonos on June 28. As you can picture, it did not disappoint. The practical experience was as dreamy as it was basic. Two trusty drivers on a speedboat picked us up near our lodge at Paraga Seaside, which is a person of the 20 formal pickup points for Uber Boat. They then properly took us on a scenic experience with the finest vibes — and tunes — to our vacation spot. En route, I acquired a near-up see of the amazing blue waters of the Aegean Sea and took enough Instagram-deserving snaps for a life time. It truly is definitely the most magnificent and, remarkably, also the quickest way to get throughout the metropolis. (The island road site visitors is no joke, specifically all through the busier vacation months.)

Like with any other Uber trip, you can book a speedboat for four to 8 individuals so extended as you reserve at the very least 45 minutes in advance. A private, area boat constitution that’s partnered with Uber will arrive at your preferred time, and you can quickly be taken to your destination. Rides expense as reduced as $130, which is actually far more reasonably priced — and handy — than booking your possess boat vacation. Just be aware the element is only obtainable during the summer months time, from June to October, in Mykonos, even though Uber hopes to broaden the service in the course of other islands.

Uber Reserve

If you haven’t utilized it ahead of, Uber Reserve lets you ebook your trip up to 90 days in advance. It really is been close to for a even though, but the feature is new to the Mediterranean and Balearic Islands. Even though you can use it to reserve typical rides a handful of several hours forward, I located it most valuable traveling to and from any airport. Uber’s flight-tracking know-how syncs your rides with your flight information, so you have a car or truck ready for you when you land at any airport, accounting for delays and active airports.

We used the service to get picked up by an Uber Van at Mykonos Airport, exactly where we were immediately welcomed outside the airport and on the road to our resort in just a couple of minutes.

Uber Vacation

Past Might, Uber launched Uber Journey, a characteristic that pulls flight particulars from your Gmail or Outlook inbox and immediately reserves rides or rental playing cards to and from the airport. I employed it for the initial time on my return to New York, where by I experienced a trip waiting for me curbside just after a extended, 10-hour flight. If you want to get fancy, you can also integrate your travel itinerary into the Uber app and enter information for your hotels, places to eat, and action bookings to quickly reserve rides.